Arkham Legacy
by JackMunroe
Summary: Jason Todd is thrown into Arkham Asylum with a familiar friend due to the new strict laws against vigilantes in Gotham City.
1. Chapter 1

The fluorescent light inside the back of the armored van flickered on, the burning sensation in Jason Todd's eyelids awakening him from the unconscious stupor he was just previously in. As his blurry vision slowly cleared, he made out a figure sitting on the opposite side of the van in front of him. Jason tried to stand, suddenly aware of the slightly chafing handcuffs attached snugly to his wrists, chained to the metal bench he was sitting on. He shook his head, trying to clear his mind. When he looked back up, he realized the figure sitting across from him was no one other than an unmasked Dick Grayson, otherwise known as Nightwing.

"Jesus. They messed you up, didn't they?" Jason asked almost insultingly, the large bruises and cuts lining Dick's face and the damage on his suit distinct in the new light.

"You should...see yourself. Face is...messed up." Dick mumbled slowly, exhausted and injured.

At Dick's words, Jason realized the stinging pain on the bridge of his nose, chuckling lightly.

"What happened? All I remember is that a bunch of guards broke into my apartment...they overwhelmed me." He looked at Dick, hoping for an answer.

"Mayor Gordon's...been impeached. Someone new came in...overnight, City Hall ruled that...vigilantes...are just as bad as criminals. They ruled to throw...us all in with them. The proposal...happened within forty minutes." Dick said laboriously.

"All in where? I guess it happened so fast, I didn't even know." Jason responded.

"Arkham...Asylum. New wings...larger than before. They've been planning this."

"They've been planning-" Before Jason could finish, the van screeched to a stop, the two of them bouncing slightly. The doors flew open, two armored guards rushing inside to unlock their cuffs, grabbing Jason and Dick roughly by the necks and pulling them to the outside of the van, throwing them both into the mud and cold rainy terrain of Arkham Island. Jason looked up through the splashes of icy rain obscuring his vision, seeing the outline of the gothic facilities through the darkness.

"Get up!" He felt the hard yank of a gloved fist against his hair, yanking him to his feet. Jason shoved his head into the stomach of the guard, pleased at the painful grunt of the man as his grip slackened, jumping over his arms to free his hands behind his back. Jason quickly got himself behind the guard, throwing his cuffs over the head of the man and beginning to choke him with the chain of his binds. As the man gurgled, he felt the butt of a gun against his temple, suddenly and swiftly falling into unconsciousness.

When Jason awoke again, he was being dragged. He saw his mud-covered legs leaving behind a trail of dirt and flecks of blood inside the rusty prison floor, being taken further and further into the asylum.

"Red Hood!"

You're gonna die in here, Arkham Knight!"

"No army to protect you in here!"

"Scarecrow's gonna kill you!"

The prisoners spewed insults at the bloodied Jason, smirking at the name of Arkham Knight. After all, he was used to the confines of this prison, having been trapped and tortured in this place by none other than the late Joker. He knew where he was. The large paneled door opened, and Jason was thrown roughly inside the almost arena-like section of the colossal new wing, almost a parking ramp in size and design with levels of prisoners on each floor trapped in cells with a massive ground floor that could hold near hundreds, the supposed luncheon area. He was pulled up by his neck once again, swaying slightly as he stood.

There were a good twenty men on the ground by Jason's count. As he viewed the swarming masses, all shouting boasts and jabs at him.

"Jason Todd!" A voice on the intercom shouted, greeted by uproarious heckling and boos. Next to Jason, a battered Nightwing stood weakly.

"Dick Grayson!" The boos were met with shouts of 'Nightwing!', his identity revealed to every prisoner in the asylum.

"Feast." Jason was suddenly pushed off of the platform, dropping several feet below to join the prisoners. He quickly scaled to the ground, landing on his feet to glare at the cautiously approaching enemies. Next to him fell Dick, landing hard on the floor with a pained grunt.

"Guys, guys, guys! If you wanted a piece of me, all you had to do was ask." Jason said slyly, cracking his knuckles.


	2. Chapter 2

"Get up, idiot." Jason grunted as the prisoners inched closer in a ring, kicking the slumped Dick Grayson. He struggled to stand, stumbling as he rose.

"Twenty guys. Four cafeteria tables. Couple dozen trays. This should be fun." He grinned, spitting on the ground. Dick jumped up and down lightly, waking himself up.

"Don't forget. No killing." Dick muttered. Jason rolled his eyes, getting into something similar of a boxing stance.

"Just 'cause old Brucie would ground you if you hit someone in the head too hard doesn't mean I have to follow his rules. Look where his morals got him."

Before Dick could argue, the men rushed forward, shouting. Jason grabbed the nearest prisoner, slamming his head into the bald tattooed one in front of him. As the giant fell backwards, he moved on to the next one, spinning around and using an open fist to smack the side of someone's head that was attacking Dick, bursting his eardrum instantly. While he was distracted with screaming, Dick delivered a front kick that sent him sprawling into a pile of his friends. Before they could get swarmed by bodies in jumpsuits, Jason leaped onto a cafeteria table, slamming his boot into the face of a prisoner that tried to climb up with him.

"Come on, then!" He yelled, distracting them from Dick. "You're a bunch of pussies!" As the now fifteen swarmed the table in rage, he used tray after tray to bat and break over their heads, kicking, punching and shoving them off. One man rushed him, Jason bending down and flipping him over his back, grabbing his hand as he fell onto the table. With a loud crack, he dropped his knee on the man's arm. The man roared in pain as it splintered into an odd angle, and Jason shoved him off the table.

"Jason! Was that really necessary?!" Dick shouted at him, holding one prisoner in a headlock as he stared indignantly up at him.

"You said no killing!" Jason responded, the fighting completely stopping as the two quarreled, the remaining grunts too interested in the verbal spat.

"Oh, so you were planning on killing him? And that's your alternative? Oh, _shut up_!" He dropped his elbow on the man's forehead, his previous attempts at breaking free ceasing as he was knocked out.

"Well, I'm sorry that I can't conform to your perfect standards! At least my first name isn't cock!"

" _It's Richard!_ " Without another word, Jason threw a tray at a distracted guard's face, while Dick stormed another one, punching him in the temples. In the ensuing chaos, Jason freed a gun while Dick stashed a set of keys. Jason jumped back onto the table, waving the gun about at the prisoners who once more stopped fighting, enraptured.

"Fetch!" He tossed the pistol into the crowd, the prisoners fighting each other for the weapon. Jason and Dick departed, scaling the walls to climb onto another level.

"Why did you give them a loaded gun? Are you insane?" He whispered as they scaled the prison. Jason opened his jacket, showing the only content on the inside, the loaded clip. Jason grinned and continued climbing.

"They won't do any damage. Unless they manage to get another one."


	3. Chapter 3

They crawled to the second floor, grabbing onto the rails. A security guard ran forward, shouting obscenities as he tried to hit Jason off the ledge with the butt of his gun. He grabbed the rifle's end, yanking it out of the man's hand and using the strap to swing the heavy weapon into the man's head. Jason and Dick vaulted over the rail, now on solid footing. "Well, that takes care of the guards." Jason picked the rifle up, checking his ammunition. Dick grabbed the muzzle of the rifle warningly. "Goddammit, I told you. We're not killing anyone today." Jason scowled, throwing the weapon onto the ground. "Fine. What's our next step then?"

"You know the way around the place."

"Yeah, before they turned this place into a fucking base."

"Still. You know the separate wings, yeah?"

"Yeah." Jason responded. "I do."

"Then that's our next step. We get our gear back." Jason began walking down the hall, followed by Dick. He suddenly stopped, grabbing his shoulder.

"Ow! What?" Dick grunted indignantly, pushing Jason's hand off his bruised shoulder and nursing it.

"The supply vault. Same building where they keep the artifacts."

"What artifacts? What's a bunch of fossils gonna-wait a minute." Dick's eyes widened, realizing the implications.

"They're letting prisoners out, Dick. A riot is starting. And we need to shut this place down. What better way to do it than with an umbrella, a freeze gun and a jetpack?"

"I like your thinking, Hood."

"Good. Then let's get the hell out of here." They both ran down the halls, looking for the closest exit.

"Our first priority is to get some feed set up." Dick panted as he jogged. "I need Oracle on the line."

"God, you're boring. Ever do something without the help of a nosy redhead?"

"Watch your mouth, Todd. There's a lot of things a redhead could help with."


	4. Chapter 4

"We need to find a map to the island. It's been years since I've been here and I don't wanna stumble into a big shitshow." Jason said, the two exiled heroes running through the asylum hallways as alarms blared in the background, the familiar Arkham chime ringing on the loudspeaker.

"Attention. Facility riot in sectors 5, 3 and 7. Guards are given permission to shoot."

Dick scowled. "God, this place is creepy. I can't believe they still have that eerie music."

"This place is cursed." Jason muttered to himself. "But we need to focus." He came across an abandoned terminal with idling computers, typing until a window with camera feeds flitted onto the screen. Videos of prisoners charging down staircases and being fired upon in masses by heavily armed guards, even mowing down the docile patients who avoided rioting.

"This isn't a riot. This is a massacre. The cells are being opened by an administrator!" Dick growled.

"Think about it, Dicky. Same day Gordon's impeached, same day vigilantes in Gotham are convicted. This is an inside job and, if I'm right," he continued, sighing. "Then they brought us here to kill us all and cover it up as a prison-wide riot."

"I'm starting to believe you. But how can all the good power in Gotham suddenly disappear overnight? What happened?" Dick questioned, anxious.

"Maybe it has something to do with that Azrael guy killing people in a bat costume. Maybe it's a government panicking. Maybe every normal person in the world just realized how much control that boy in blue tights could have with a whole league of super freaks." Jason chuckled.

"I don't know how you even know about the justice protocol, but that hasn't been necessary yet, we have an easy enough time saving ourselves." Dick countered. "But we need to hurry. Fuck."

Dick reached for a portable radio, popping open the back circuit and reaching in his thin belt, pulling out a small chip and plugging it into a port in the back cartridge.

"Oracle. It's Nightwing. Authorize code 'Thomas'." He waited tensely, listening to the static.

"Thank god you're alive." Barbara's worried voice rang out. "No ones responding, I can't get through to Tim either."

"Me and Jason escaped. We're inside the facility now, but we haven't seen Tim. Did they take him?" Dick asked, his fists clenching.

"One second I had a feed of him gliding over Central, then just dead air. Please look for him." Oracle pleaded. Jason grabbed the radio.

"Did they take him?" He asked simply.

"...Azrael's still responding. Right now he's infiltrating a Penguin meetup. He killed Edward Nigma, Dick. I don't think bringing him into this would help."

"Batmans the only thing anybody in Gotham's still afraid of. You want to see your fucking boyfriend? Call him." Jason interrupted, walking off.

"Sorry about him. Keep in contact. Don't ask him yet." Dick stuffed the radio in his pocket, running off after Jason. The two walked out of the back exit of the Penitentiary, large metallic doors sliding open and cool air seeping into the room.

"Don't move, asshole!" Officers shouted, at the bottom of the stairs positioned with pistols and assault rifles. Jason and Dick looked at each other briefly.

"Eight. Three machine guns. Five revolvers. What are you thinking, Rich?" Jason asked casually.


	5. Chapter 5

"I'm thinking we're going to need to escape." Dick whispered. The two drew their hands into the air, walking forward in surrender. The men edged away nervously, the cold night dead silent in anticipation.

"Nightwing and Red Hood are apprehended, orders?" A man in his sixties with a scarred face and a shaven head reported into his microphone, his gun still trained on the duo.

 _"The prison is out of our control. Kill them."_ The radio crackled in response.

Even before the two combat veterans moved a muscle in their body to evade and scatter away from the confrontation, having years training to know to hide yourself, regroup and retaliate in the surprise of the moment, they heard a familiar click and sound of an electric charge being distributed to the weapons of the officers. The two gave a knowing look to each other, confirming the Disruptor technology that was just used from afar.

They launched forward in unison, grabbing heads by ears and fistfuls of hair as they delivered blows to the startled group, the men shouting for help as they grappled with the two martial arts masters. Jason reached for the hand being pulled back in a punch closest to him, twisting the man's wrist and pulling him to the ground. The crunch of breaking bones pierced the air, the old veteran who spoke into his radio earlier yelling in agony. Dick ripped apart a rifle, removing detachments and using it as a blunt weapon as he weaved through the group, cracking officers in the back of the head until there were no more bodies to drop. The last man conscious was the supposed captain, still groaning from his arm. Jason stood over him, holding bunches of his shirt and glaring.

"What's your name?" Jason asked.

"Howard Branden." The old man panted, spitting blood in Jason's face. Jason laughed, angrily flipping the man on his back and sitting on his back legs, contorting his left ankle backwards. Branden screamed, pounding the ground.

"What do you want?! I'll tell you everything, let go!" He pleaded, Dick watching in silence as he considered intervening.

"You tell us where Tim Drake is, and I won't leave you here crawling around while a riot goes on. After all, these prisoners would be pretty happy to see you. Sound good?" Jason said threateningly, grinning.

"Robin? He's in Arkham Mansion. But you're too late. You fuckin' bat freaks are crazy if you think you're walking out of here alive."

"Jason." Dick called in warning. "We're not alone. Someone's watching us."

"No shit." Jason responded. "You think our guardian angel turned off those guards' guns?"

"You're a smart boy." Catwoman said as she stepped out of the darkness, her full body suit damaged and in a state of disarray. On top of the woman's strong features were layers of soot and blood, indicating she had been in some sort of skirmish.

"Selina!" Jason grinned. "Damn, I used to have a huge crush on you."


	6. Chapter 6

"That's cute, but let's save the pleasantries for later." Selina smiled, circling the officer on the ground and putting a heeled boot to his face.

"Why are all the vigilantes being locked up with the criminals?" She asked dangerously, applying pressure.

"Your bat-buddy isn't in office anymore. Gordon's probably floating around a river somewhere. With Kase as Mayor, things are changing." He grunted.

"Kase?" Dick said aloud, unfamiliar with the name.

"Terry Gene Kase. He was just sworn in two hours ago. He's a billionaire from some fuckin' country. Been supplying GCPD with all our new toys, and been giving paychecks all around. Batman ain't got no power with the cops anymore."

"Batman saved this whole city's ass on many occasions. Nice way to repay us." Dick snapped back, pulling a radio out of his pocket.

"Oracle. Tim is in Arkham Mansion. He's already been unmasked."

 _"That's better than nothing. Please get him."_ Barbara Gordon pleaded. Dick bent down, pulling an access card out of Branden's coat pocket and scanning it into his wrist gauntlet.

"I don't have my Cryptographic Sequencer. Can you use the clearance codes off of this card to give us access?" Dick asked.

 _"One second...done. I don't know how long that's gonna last, since network administrators can remove the charge at any time. I'd say you're good as long as no one figures out you're using it."_

"Thanks Oracle. Heading to the mansion now."

"Well." Jason said. "Looks like we've got our way in. I get that you need to find birdboy and all, but don't forget the main mission. We need to figure out what's really going on here."

"And we can do that, after we find Tim." Dick responded firmly. "But right now let's hurry. Where's the supply vault?" He asked the still sprawled captain, nursing his broken hand.

"Same place Robin is. Should be a big ol' vault door."

"Is that where they keep all the vigilante's belongings?" Jason asked. Branden laughed.

"Good luck trying to get anything from in there, you fucking freaks-" The captain was interrupted by Selina, suddenly dropping a knee on the man's head, knocking him out instantly.

"That answers our question. Can we hurry up now?" She said. The two nodded and began jogging with her towards the opposite side of the island.

"Where'd you get a Disruptor, by the way?" Dick said.

"Parting gift from Bruce." She said simply, keeping pace. Dick wondered silently what the nature of their relationship really was.

"So why are you helping us, Hood? Last time I checked it was your militia trying to control Gotham." Selina said.

"Change of heart. I should have never put my trust in Crane, that crazy fuck. He wanted to control the city with his gas. I wanted to kill Bats."

"But not anymore?" Selina wondered.

"Well, it's kind of hard to kill somebody that's already dead. But we did make peace a short time before that." Jason snickered.

"He's not dead." Dick interjected. Jason rolled his eyes.

"He's dead, buddy. Get over it." Jason responded.

"You're telling me he blew up his mansion with Alfred inside and really killed himself? And Alfred was okay with this plan? You know them. They faked it to escape. It's a Batman move he pulled. He'll be back-"

"So where is he right now?" Selina interrupted, looking up at the night. "If it was all a setup, then why hasn't he come back when things are this bad?"

"Because he trusts us." Dick said. "He knows he had to pass the mantle on. He knows I'm here, and Tim's here, and-"

Jason laughed. "I think you put yourself a little too high on that list. He only passed the mantle to one person, and right now that person is gassing criminals in the streets."

"Azrael will get his one day. Bruce will return." Dick insisted.

"Change of subject! We've arrived." Selina pulled out her whip, cracking her knuckles. Jason walked up, scanning the key card to the door mechanism. A chime issued out and a green light flashed, the door unmagnetized. Jason grinned, opening it up and walking in alone.

"I'm home!" He shouted, taking in the familiar view of the interior mansion. To Jason's surprise and dismay the Quincy Sharp statue was still standing, but without a head. Six armed guards turned around, dressed in riot gear and carrying heavy assault rifles. Jason put his hands above his head, smiling as the men approached carefully with their guns drawn.

"I surrender." He chuckled, waiting for the right man to come into close enough proximity. As they approached in a close-knit circle, Jason grabbed the nearest gun, pulling one of the guards into a chokehold and seizing his rifle, putting an expert hand on the trigger and jamming the end underneath his riot helmet, the barrel directly poking the man in the neck. Jason smiled, taking steps back with the hostage as Selina and Dick walked into the house.

"Jason!" Dick called out, already formulating a plan in his head to escape. Selina watched with interest.

More guards stormed into the room and down the many steps, filing into position and taking aim.

"Any of you move, this little piggy gets it." Jason counted in his head how many there were, coming to a bakers dozen. He realized he couldn't fistfight his way out of this, and there weren't any vantage points in the building to escape to for a stealth approach. He shrugged, kicking the man forward and unloading into his back, picking off two more guards with clean headshots that punctured their helmets before diving under cover.


End file.
